Decriminalisation of all drugs for personal use considered

Growing calls in recent years for the decriminalisation of drugs for personal use

The Irish Times (Ireland)Tuesday, April 18, 2017

The decriminalisation of all drugs, including heroin, cocaine and cannabis, for personal use is one of the policy options outlined in the forthcoming National Drug Strategy. Minister of State for Drugs Catherine Byrne will publish the strategy – which will govern all drugs policy from now until 2020 – before the summer. It proposes a group be established to “consider the approaches taken in other jurisdictions to the possession of small quantities of drugs for personal use”. There have been growing calls in recent years, including from Ms Byrne’s predecessor Aodhán Ó Ríordáin, for the decriminalisation of drugs for personal use.

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